In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast, we sit down with Mikko Myllymaki, CEO and co-founder of Gro Clinics. Steve Jobs once said, ‘You cannot connect the dots looking forward, but you can connect them looking backwards.’ This statement perfectly sums up Mikko’s perspective of life perfectly.

As a young man, Mikko was scared of public speaking and lacked confidence. He says ‘all growth happens outside of your comfort zone.’ We discuss identity as Mikko describes his younger self as a ‘do-er, not a human being’ and shares his struggle with confidence. ‘We always make decisions with the information we have one hand’ says Mikko, ‘You don’t know what you don’t know and it took me about 8 years to realise I was in the wrong place.’  

After  Mikko moved to Australia to study, he finally found the tools he needed to start communicating in a better way. Ultimately, Mikko met his current partner who gave him the strength to become a father and realised his dream. Mikko started Gro Clinics and says, ‘Helping other people with their own confidence was a dream come true. All events shape who you are. I didn’t know how to articulate my dream but when I did it was amazing.’  We discuss cosmetic surgery and Mikko shares some examples of healthy self-improvement. ‘I know what it feels like to lack confidence’ says Mikko, ‘it holds you back.’

So, is Mikko his business or is he the individual and would he define himself? ‘It is my driver and the current vehicle. If I lost the business it would be a good lesson but, it would demonstrate that I can create something meaningful and that is what inspires me.’

As a father of two boys, what sort of man does Mikko want to be for his children? ‘I want them to come to me when they have challenges’ says Mikko, ‘I teach them that if you come from a place of love, your resources are unlimited. So, be yourself, express your feelings and if you want something to change the choice is up to you.’

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Mikko shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU.

Links

Gro Clinics

In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast, we sit down with Donna Campsi to discuss how she went from Mystery Girl to Miracle Girl.

Donna's story is of a seven-year-old girl who survived a stroke, and her journey, as a woman, to learn to run again. Donna’s story is a miraculous one about strength, overcoming struggles and achieving results that even shocked doctors.

Donna shares her experience with illness, the impact of her childhood hospitalisations and the value of the support she received from those around her. ‘Your cheer squad, or whatever you want to call it, is needed to get through all situations in our lives’ says Donna, ‘I wouldn’t be who I am today without them.’

2012 is where Donna’s stroke-to-marathon challenge began. She now is a speaker and author and has been inspiring others to reach their goals. ‘Your why is so important' says Donna. She gives us her tips for motivation and, how to keep moving forward with our goals. She says, ‘rather than asking yourself, ‘Can I do this?’ asking yourself, ‘How can I do this?’ the difference is the mindset.’ There is always a way to do something if it is something you really want to do.

Fighting any battle, whether is physical or mental, requires us to take the first step. ‘No one else can do the action for you’ says Donna. There is an opportunity for growth in the midst of hardship. Focus on your strengths ‘and be grateful for the steps you have taken. Rest in it and celebrate it.’  

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Donna Campsi shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU.

Links:

Donna Campsi

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In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU, we sit down with author Marie Kimber as we discuss confidence, getting past yourself and discovering passion. Marie works as a Life Coach, shifting the mindset of those wanting to scale their personal or professional life.

Travel has been a turning point for Marie. After an 11-year relationship ended, Marie travelled to Italy. During this trip, she discovered passion and clarity for her life. Travelling gave her a sense of independence, belonging and peace. We discuss how being selfish is self-caring and, Marie shares some practical tips on how to make these changes in your own life to find your passions as she has discovered her own passion for writing.

Maire grew up in a household where confidence and arrogance were not encouraged. Marie, over recent reflections, has realised her desire to make her family proud and how she has come to a place of self-security. She shares how there is now validation, communication and shared values in her relationship.

In 2006, Marie suffered from Guillain-Barré Syndrome and experienced full-body paralysis. She spent the next 7 weeks in the ICU paralysed and another 2 months learning to walk again. This experience gave Marie a unique appreciation of life. She says, ‘A lot of people go through life and don’t notice the little things like a flower blooming. Without my experience, I don’t know who I would be today'. Marie shares the value in getting older and the lived experience. ‘It gives you perspective’ she says and encourages us to slow down, take the time to notice the beauty in nature and ‘get past yourself.’

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Marie shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU.

Links:

If you're contemplating making changes in your life, need help to find your purpose or follow your passion, book a free session with Marie to see how she can help. 

Marie Kimber

Get your copy of ‘Change is not a Scary Word’

In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast our host, Heather Jones interviews Callum. He is 12 years old, on the spectrum and has an incredible mind.

Callum shares some of his top achievements from his ‘log life so far’. The awards he has received at school, how he feels about them and the experience of is school talent show.

The next big step for Callum will be moving Western Australia. His feelings of excitement for the move stem from his passion for fossils. As he explains, WA is the home of the biggest sauropods in the world – the Australotitan.

So, what makes Callum UNIQUELY YOU? His care and compassion for others has always been a part of his personality. His high-school experience has changed a lot for him. With the assistance of teacher-aids his love for maths has started to grow however, he is a science lover through and through. He has plans to become a paleontologist and would love to spend 17 years digging up a fossil.

And finally, Callum’s parting words of advice to us - ‘Think about your goals in the future and think about what it is going to be worth, and the possibilities it will bring’.

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as our host, Heather Jones, shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU.

Links

Heather Jones Consulting

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In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast our host, we sit down with Lily to discuss identity. Heather and Lily share a blog called Living Between Cultures. ‘For me identity is quite personal and subjective’ says Lily, ‘I want to make every second count towards my life’.

Lily has always struggled with her identity as he migrated to different countries. Lily is Taiwanese and grew up in Japan before migrating to Australia to complete high school. ‘I struggled to call myself Taiwanese, Japanese and even Australian.’ Culture is such an identifying factor. Lily has always tried to fit into the cultural norms with clothing, makeup and the way in which she presented herself. She says, ‘I was bothered by this item of culture until I was able to find my feet, and myself – it needed courage.’

Expectation, and the way it interacts with our identity can be a huge contributing factor. Lily shares a dating story which fully encapsulates the pressure of expectation and, the impact it can have on our identity. ‘I was confused by that [expectation]’ says Lily, ‘I was too caught up in the cultural differences and forgot that I am still a human being’. The question then becomes – We are accepted by whom and, do we want to be accepted within that environment?

So, is Lily becoming clearer on her identity? ‘I am’ says Lily, ‘I have found myself and I feel grounded, instead of a watery version of myself.’ Lily shares the sense of security she has found and how she embraced it. ‘When everything else becomes external noise, I can grow.  It gives me the courage I need to explore the world out there.’

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Lily shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU as you show up as yourself.   

Links

Living Between Cultures

Heather Jones Consulting

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In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast our host, we sit down with Sally. Heather and Sally met through coaching and connected on a whole new level. Sally has faced so much in her life - she has an ongoing heart condition but has been able to come to a place of peace and today, will share with us how we can too. 

Sally says, ‘I had to come to a deep acceptance of ‘The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruizwho’ who showed me that no-one has the authority over my soul journey other than myself’ says Sally ‘It’s the most sacred space on earth, in any realm, and gives me a lot of comforts to be more of me than I could ever allow myself to be.’ Not everyone has been accepting of Sally’s approach and perspective of the world but, over time, she has learnt that she is the one who gets to choose. 

‘I believe we are ‘learning’ to navigate our birth life’ says Sally. She has learnt to embrace all of her uniqueness and beliefs. ‘There is a difference between accepting and tolerating’ says Sally, ‘updating my process’ and thinking has been the biggest change for me.’  We are our greatest critic and Sally shares how she personally processes information and asks herself, what is my role in this? ‘For me, knowing about success is actually living it.’  Sally has a heart condition; however, she has not let her diagnosis hold her back. ‘I had no choice but to listen to all that my heart was communicating to me. It was telling me to pause.’ The question then becomes, what do we do with that. ‘We all have a choice as to what degree we want to heal.’ I choose to enliven every single day.’ The experience is the situation, it is not who I am’ says Sally. 

When Sally does not express self-love and does not care for herself, she ends up in destruct mode. ‘I take full responsibility for how I show up in the world’ says Sally, ‘Those are the things that I can reflect back on as being my legacy’.

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Sally shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU. 

Books

The Four Agreements - Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz

Links

Heather Jones Consulting 

Connect with Heather on Facebook

Join the Unlock Your Awesomeness Community

In this episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast, we sit down with Teash to discuss embracing the messiness within ourselves. ‘There is a lot to learn in the messiness’ says Teash. 

Teash has completed a lot of study in the realm of personal development. One of her biggest learnings – You are not broken - there is nothing to fix. ‘It dawned on me that I wasn’t broken. Everything was just a set of strategies that I had either learnt, or was conditioned into understanding’ says Teash, ‘and any of them could be changed at any time with the right tools.’ This realisation gave Teash the power to know that she could handle anything that came her way. 

Comparison to others can often become a trap. Teash has dealt with these feelings and in business has learnt to ‘look outwards only when you are ready to do market research, after you already have a grip on what it is you want to share, and believe in yourself through that process.’ We are faced with choices each and every day. ‘Embracing the unknown can be challenging – but remember that is ok’ says Teash, ‘embrace the messiness that comes with all of that.’

Teash shares her tips for boosting your inner-awesomeness. Look in the mirror every day, and tell yourself how awesome you are. ‘I felt like an idiot to begin with’ shares Teash, ‘I knew that the awkwardness would pass – and it got to the point that I was able to sing my awesomeness song to myself. It became an ‘of course’ in my brain and then became part of my identity’. 

And finally, Teash shares her biggest learning when learning to embrace your messy. ‘If you pick up something you don’t like – just put it down again. It’s your choice.’ 

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Teash shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU. 

Links

Heather Jones Consulting 

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Join the Unlock Your Awesomeness Community

In this first episode of UNIQUELY YOU our host, Heather Jones, interviews Sharon C. 

Sharon shares how she used to be a doormat for others. ‘My self-doubt and lack of confidence brought me to a place where I would become physically ill at the thought of contributing.’ With some work, Sharon slowly chipped away at her walls and finally came to a place where she could say, ‘no more – let’s go and face these demons.’  

Goal setting has become an important part of Sharon’s life. She has learnt who to share her goals with. ‘I decided to not give people fuel for criticism’ she says. ‘I still get triggered, but my strategy is to set clear boundaries and define my core values.’ Part of goal setting is celebrating those goals, but self-doubt has made this difficult for Sharon. ‘It has only been recently that I have been able to sit in this feeling. You are worthy. And, that’s a great achievement for me’ says Sharon. 

Sharon describes herself as a highly anxious person and shares an experience from her 20s. ‘It’s the self-talk that has changed this for me’ says Sharon. ‘Sharing life and difficulties with someone you trust is paramount.’

So, with everything Sharon has had to deal with, what does she say to those who ask, ‘Why bother?’ ‘I will bother, because I am going to beat this. I am not going to let it consume my life. For me, my mantra has become – ‘I love the challenge - so bring it’ says Sharon.  

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as Sharon Clark shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU. 

Heather Jones Consulting 

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In the first episode of UNIQUELY YOU Podcast our host, Heather Jones, is interviewed by Amelia Rees, Podcast Producer, to discuss why she is starting this Podcast. 

Heather, throughout her life, has struggled when she didn’t need to. As a behavioural specialist, she has learnt to challenge thinking, change patterns and has seen the results from her 40 years of experience. Her goal is to share with us simple tips and tricks so that we too can ‘enjoy the dance of life'. She is a master of disrupting thinking and wants to see all of us to embrace our messy and unlock our true potential to be UNIQUELY YOU.

Heather has developed a range of steps to embrace who we truly are. The first step is to unlock our self-limiting beliefs and have the courage to put in the work. We receive a real-life example of how this can be done as Amelia shares her own experience of embracing all parts of yourself. 

Allowing ourselves to get messy, and open ourselves up so we can ask those deeper questions, is the next step. We all have a choice. We can either suppress our emotions or deal with them. The question is – Are we willing to embrace all of who we are in order to find our true selves?

So, sit back and enjoy this episode as our host, Heather Jones, shares how to be UNIQUELY YOU. 

Links: 

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